


Danger

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable, Star Stable Online
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-23
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-10 13:47:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7847488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jess hides in the Hermit's cottage when Louisa comes to visit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Danger

Jessica didn’t come over as often as she used to. Certainly not as often as the hermit would’ve preferred. Still, at least she still visited sometimes. She couldn’t stay long, though, and he understood. She was a busy woman. But she was always quick to assure him that her avoidance of him wasn’t because of his old age. Not that it ever bothered him, anyway.

She was visiting when the other girl first appeared. Jess startled awake from where she’d been sleeping beside him on the couch, and at first he thought that she’d had a nightmare. Those happened sometimes. Very rarely, but sometimes. But then he saw that she was still looking at the door.

“Jess?” he asked. “What’s wrong?”

“She’s here,” said Jess. “I can feel her.”

“Who’s here?” asked the hermit, putting an arm around her. Jess snuggled into him, closing her eyes.

“A monster,” said Jess. “She’s a goddess hiding as a human. Only she doesn’t know it. But she’s still my enemy and she knows that I’m a Dark Rider, she’s seen me. I can’t let her see me here.”

“I’ll do my best to keep her away,” said the hermit. “You just stay inside, I won’t let her inside this house. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Okay. Thank you,” said Jess, and kissed him. He kissed her back, then picked up his cane and left the house, while Jess pulled the couch’s blanket over herself and tried to tell herself that she wasn’t hiding under the blankets from the monster like some little kid.

Half an hour later, the door opened and Jess peeked out from under the blanket.

“It’s just me,” the hermit called, and Jess pushed the blanket down and sat up again.

“Is she gone?” asked Jess.

“For now,” said the hermit. “I’ve sent her on the beach race.”

“You can’t stay long, she’s a fast rider,” said Jess. 

“I know. I’m trying my best to keep her away,” said the hermit. “Don’t worry, she’ll be gone soon.” He kissed her on the forehead, and Jess pulled him in for another kiss that had to end too soon as the sound of hoofbeats came closer to the house.

“She’ll be back here every day to train, but usually that’s not until the afternoon,” said Jess after Louisa had finally left. “So we’ll have all day together.”

“You don’t have to stay if it makes you feel like this,” said the hermit. “She won’t hurt me.”

“I know,” said Jess. “But I want to. I’ve really been missing you. Missing my whole family. It was quiet and now it’s not and I just miss this.”

“Maybe you’re being reminded of my mortality,” said the hermit.

“No,” said Jess. “I mean, maybe. But it’s like I’m leaving my whole family at the mercy of a predator, and I hate it.”

“I really liked having you here for the past decade,” said the hermit, trying to take her mind off it by reminding her of happier times. “Before this all started again.”

“I liked it too,” said Jess with a grin. “Loved it, even. It was like when we were raising Jonas only it wasn’t my baby that we were raising.”

“I suppose that it’s a good thing that we decided not to have a child during that time, then,” said the hermit. “I wanted to.”

“I was too damaged,” said Jess. “Damn that Dark Portal, and that girl. Honestly, I’d still be sterile if I hadn’t become a Dark Rider.”

“Oh, so it wasn’t just you wanting to wait, then,” said the hermit. “I’m sorry. If I’d known…”

“It’s okay,” said Jess, and sighed. “I only figured it out when everything returned to normal after the Dark Rider transformation.”

The hermit pulled Jess into his arms and she got comfortable there. She’d never expected him to have to protect her. But now he was, without even being asked. And if Louisa figured it out somehow, she’d kill her to protect her precious family.


End file.
